“Claire! Hi! Come on in.” Harper stepped back and waved Luke’s mom in.
Claire held up a plastic container of mini cheesecakes. “I was just in the neighborhood with baked goods and thought I’d stop in.”
“Oh my God. For those, you can move in,” Harper laughed. “Come on back. Can I get you something to drink? Water? Iced tea?”
“Iced tea would be great, thanks.” Claire started down the hall behind Harper and made it as far as the dining room.
“Oh, he finally got furniture!”
Harper joined her in the doorway. “Just this week. I accidentally invited some friends over for dinner without knowing that Luke was terribly sensitive about not having places for people to sit.”
“I’ve been waiting for that boy to turn this house into a home for so long,” Claire turned to Harper. “You, my dear, deserve more than half a dozen cheesecakes.”
After a quick tour of the rest of the new furniture, they took their iced tea on the back porch to enjoy the spring day.
Claire pushed off the porch boards and set the swing into an easy motion. “I have a confession to make. I wasn’t just in the neighborhood with baked goods.”
“You don’t say,” Harper said over the rim of her glass.
“Luke calls it meddling. I call it mothering,” she sighed, running a hand through her short dark hair threaded with silver. It was a standard Luke move that made Harper smile. “He thinks because he’s a grown man that his business is his business. But he doesn’t understand what it’s like to raise someone into an adult. You don’t just stop ...”
“Caring?”
Claire nodded. “Exactly. He’s thirty years old and I still feel the need to make sure he’s okay. I bet your parents are the same way.”
Harper cocked her head. “I imagine they would be. They passed away when I was very young, but I like to think that they would have a vested interest in my life if they were still here.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that, Harper. I didn’t know! Please excuse me for opening my gigantic mouth.”
Harper laughed. “That’s all right. It was a long time ago.”
“Time doesn’t always heal all wounds,” Claire said a little sadly. “Some never recover from loss.”
“I guess some of us just don’t recognize how valuable our time is here. How we shouldn’t spend our time mourning our loss, but thanking our lucky stars we had someone wonderful in our lives for no matter how long.”
“Then Luke’s told you —”
Claire was cut off by the screen door swinging open.
Harper felt her pulse flutter at the sight of Luke. His worn jeans were covered in dirt, and the t-shirt molded to his chest had a good deal of sweat mixed in with the dirt. Even his baseball hat had sweat stains. He looked like he had sauntered straight off the pages of a sexy construction worker calendar. The scratch and sniff kind.
“Ladies.” Luke dropped a kiss on Harper’s forehead and crossed to the porch railing where he leaned.
“I was just in the neighborhood and thought I’d stop in,” Claire said innocently.
“Sure you were, Ma. You’re not interrogating poor Harper are you?”
“No, but I was shoving my big, fat foot in my mouth since you neglected to tell me her parents passed away. These things wouldn’t happen if you’d com-mu-ni-cate.” The silvery charms dangling from her ears jingled with each syllable.
“Yes, Ma.” Luke rolled his eyes. “So you weren’t grilling Harper?”
“I hadn’t gotten around to it, yet. I’m a polite interrogator. I was easing Harper into it,” Claire winked.
“How’s work going?” Luke asked. “We got a call today from Della. Says they want to do that addition.”
Claire nodded. “The flower business is booming. I’m only supposed to be there two days a week, but I’ve been called in just about every Friday and a couple of Saturdays to help with wedding orders. Della and Fred are looking to hire someone full-time to eventually take over as manager.”
“Do they have any candidates?” Harper asked.
“You’re not looking to quit already, are you?” Luke teased.
Harper laughed. “No, but Gloria is looking for something.”
“Gloria Parker? Good for her!” Claire nodded briskly. “It’s about time she gets a chance to spread her wings. Have her call the store and I’ll hook her up with Della for an interview.”
“That would be great! Thank you so much.”
“Hey, I owe the girl who inspired my son to get a girlfriend, hire an office manager, and buy furniture more than a few mini cheesecakes.”